Still River

Angelos Frantzis : 2018
Akínito potámi

Anna and Petros, a Greek couple who recently moved to an industrial Siberian town on account of Petros' work, are shocked to discover Anna is pregnant with no prior intercourse. Did she cheat? Are they victims of a conspiracy? Or blessed with a miracle? Looking for a logical explanation to their situation, Petros starts distrusting Anna, who chooses to embrace the pregnancy, turning to religion to cope. Their previously unshakeable bond starts to falter and cracks begin to show, as their relationship becomes the battleground between the rational and the spiritual. Set against the striking frozen landscapes of Siberia, a haunting, touching suspense drama about love, trust and faith struggling in the face of doubt. Angelos Frantzis's feature was winner of the Greek Film Critics Association Award when it premiered at Thessaloniki International Film Festival 2018.

Official Secrets

Gavin Hood : 2019

The true story of British Intelligence whistle-blower Katharine Gun who, during the immediate run-up to the 2003 Iraq invasion, leaked a top secret National Security Agency memo exposing a joint US-UK illegal spying operation against members of the UN Security Council. The memo proposed blackmailing smaller, undecided member states into voting for war. At great personal and professional risk, journalist Martin Bright published the leaked document in The Observer newspaper in London, and the story made headlines around the world. Members of the Security Council were outraged and any chance of a UN resolution in favour of war collapsed. But within days, Bush declared he no longer needed UN backing and invaded anyway. As Iraq descended into chaos, Katharine was arrested and charged with breaching the Official Secrets Act. Martin faced potential charges too. Their legal battles exposed the highest levels of government in both London and Washington with having manipulated intelligence in order to sell an illegal war. Gavin Hood's feature premiered at Sundance Film Festival 2019.

Il bene mio

Pippo Mezzapesa : 2018
My Own Good

The last remaining inhabitant of Provvidenza, a village destroyed by an earthquake, Elia refuses to go along with the rest of the community, which has resettled in Nuova Provvidenza and put the past behind them. To Elia, his town is still alive, and thanks to the help of an old friend, Gesualdo, he strains to keep its memory alive as well. When the mayor orders him to abandon Provvidenza, Elia seems to be on the point of pulling up stakes, when he suddenly senses a strange presence. In fact, a young woman, Noor, is hiding in the rubble of the school, where Elia's wife had lost her life. Noor is on the run, and this chance encounter, coupled with Elia's own desire as keeper of the flame for Provvidenza, brings him up against a decision from which there is no going back. Pippo Mezzapesa's feature premiered as a Special Event screening at Venice Days 2018.

Gwen

William McGregor : 2018

In the stark beauty of 19th century Wales a young girl tries desperately to hold her home together. Struggling with her mother's mysterious illness, her father's absence and a ruthless mining company encroaching on their land. A growing darkness begins to take grip of her home, and the suspicious local community turns on Gwen and her family. Gwen lives on a farm in the hills of Snowdonia with her mother, Elen and little sister Mari. Like nearly all the local men, Gwen's father is away at war. Elen, Gwen, and Mari must already maintain a punishing work schedule to keep the farm going, but they are plagued by one ominous occurrence after another, as well as by a town that begins to become suspicious of their behaviour. A neighbouring family perishes from cholera; potatoes are rotting in the soil; Elen becomes ill and there is no money for medicine. And their sheep – someone has slaughtered every one of their sheep. Who could possibly wish such misfortune on this humble family? William McGregor's feature debut premiered in the Discovery section at Toronto International Film Festival 2018.

The Miseducation of Cameron Post

Desiree Akhavan : 2018

It's 1993 and after having been discovered in the arms of a girl at a school prom, Cameron Post is packed off to a Christian conversion camp called God's Promise, in a remote area where it is hoped she will be cured of her 'gayness'. While she is being subjected to questionable gay conversion therapies Cameron meets a group of fellow sinners including the amputee stoner Jane, and her friend, the Lakota Two-Spirit, Adam. Together, this group of teenagers form an unlikely family as they fight to survive in the face of intolerance and denial. A rally cry for individualism, Desiree Akhavan's feature was winner of the Grand Jury Prize when it premiered in competition at Sundance Film Festival 2018.

L'homme fidèle

Louis Garrel : 2018
A Faithful Man

Marianne leaves Abel for Paul, his best friend and the father of her unborn child. Eight years later, Paul dies. As they meet again, Abel decides to win back Marianne, arousing feelings of jealousy in both Marianne's son, Joseph, and Paul's sister, Eva, who has secretly loved Abel since childhood. As the plot snakes through the bric-à-brac of Abel's days, we find an ironic and sympathetic sensibility on display. Rather than being in control, Abel is acted on, as he good-humouredly tries to navigate the challenges that come his way. Louis Garrel's second feature premiered in Special Presentations at Toronto International Film Festival 2018, and won the Jury Prize for Best Screenplay when it had its European premiere at San Sebastián International Film Festival 2018.

Beast

Michael Pearce : 2017

Living in an isolated community, a troubled young woman finds herself pulled between the control of her oppressive family and the allure of a secretive outsider suspected of a series of brutal murders. Yearning to escape from her stifling home life, Moll, the black sheep of an upper-crust family on the island of Jersey, impulsively moves in with Pascal, a rugged hunter with a mysterious past. When a local girl goes missing following a string of murders, Moll must decide what to trust: her own instincts, or the mysterious man with whom she has made a home. A riveting, slow-burning thriller about the limits of love and the darkness inside us. Michael Pearce's feature debut premiered in the Platform section at Toronto International Film Festival 2017, and had its UK premiere at London Film Festival 2017.

On Chesil Beach

Dominic Cooke : 2017

In July 1962, Edward Mayhew, a graduate student of history, and Florence Ponting, a violinist of a string quartet, have just been married and are spending their honeymoon in a small hotel on the Dorset seashore, at Chesil Beach. The two are very much in love despite being from drastically different backgrounds. During the course of an evening, both reflect upon their upbringing and the prospect of their futures. Edward is sexually motivated and, though intelligent, has a taste for rash behaviour. Florence is bound by the social code of another era and, perhaps having been sexually abused by her father, is terrified of sexual intimacy. Florence tries to mentally prepare herself for the inevitable consummation, but the thought of it continues to repulse her. The story unfolds with great tenderness to show how, unbeknownst to them both, the decisions they make that summer will resonate throughout their lives. Dominic Cooke's feature premiered in Special Presentations at Toronto International Film Festival 2017, and had its UK premiere at London Film Festival 2017.

The Heart

Fanni Metelius : 2018
Hjärtat

Photographer Mika and music producer Tesfay prove to be each other's first great loves. With their talents, her blonde hair and his black dreads, they are a beautiful couple that fits in perfectly in today's Sweden. After a period of courtship, parties, sex and getting to know each other, they decide to live together. For the outside world, this hip couple presents an ideal picture, but things start going wrong between the sheets. An insidious power game is in play, with its rules changing like music beats at the parties in Gothenburg, Stockholm and Ibiza. Behind closed doors and beautifying filters lies a raw reality where Mika's control over her mind and body is at stake. But Mika rips apart relationship prejudices and explores what really makes our pulses quicken in matters of the modern heart. Fanni Metelius's feature debut premiered in the Bright Future section at International Film Festival Rotterdam 2018.

Kejal

Nima Salehyiar : 2018

Kejal, a young Kurdish woman studying at Tehran returns home when her brother is killed in the mountains, leaving behind debts for lost goods. Forced by circumstance, Kejal becomes a kulbar – a woman in a men's world, a world where a woman aspiring towards independence has to be particularly strong. Risking their life, kulbars climb on narrow mountain paths every day, carrying 40kg of goods on their back. Every mistaken step may chance upon a landmine. The Iranian authorities regard them as smugglers and they are hunted like wild animals. The extremely poor Kurds regard it as a traditional profession which keeps families fed and alive. They do not regard it as crossing the Iran-Iraq border – for them, it is all Kurdistan. Nima Salehyiar's feature debut premiered in the First Feature Competition at Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival 2018.

Les routes en février

Katherine Jerkovic : 2018
Roads in February

Sarah goes to visit her paternal grandmother Magda in Uruguay. When she was little her family migrated to Canada and now Sarah is back after her father's death. However, those places and people in the small Uruguayan village are now foreign to her. Even talking to her grandmother is strained. Magda who never saw her son again after he left, isn't exactly thrilled to see Sarah. She reminds her of everything she would rather forget. Sarah at the same time wanders around in the unrelenting heat, searching for some sort of connection with the place she once called home. Inspired by the writer-director's own personal story, the film speaks through silences and pauses. What do we lose by leaving? Can you ever go back home again? Katherine Jerkovic's feature debut was winner of the Best Canadian First Feature Film award when it premiered at Toronto International Film Festival 2018, and had its international premiere at Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival 2018.

Journey to a Mother's Room

Celia Rico Clavellino : 2018
Viaje al cuarto de una madre

Leonor is keen to leave home. She's just broken up with her partner and isn't happy in the job her mother Estrella has secured for her in a tailor's workshop. She wants to escape the small-town mentality of southern Spain and experience the big-city life in London. But leaving her mother when they are both still reeling from the recent death of a loving husband and caring father is not easy. Whatever decision Leonor makes will have important consequences. A detailed examination of the minutiae of the myriad nuances inherent in family life. The film delicately handles the challenges of generational difference in a close emotional relationship, where so much remains unspoken and nothing can be taken for granted. Celia Rico Clavellino's feature debut premiered in the New Directors section at San Sebastián International Film Festival 2018 where it won the Youth Jury Award, and had its UK premiere at London Film Festival 2018.

The Purity of Vengeance

Christoffer Boe : 2018
Journal 64

Two workmen make an alarming discovery in an older Copenhagen apartment: hidden behind a false wall are three mummified corpses, sitting around a dining table with one empty seat left. The case quickly ends up on the desk of Detective Superintendent Carl Mørck and his assistant Assad from Department Q, and it is up to them to figure out, who the mummies are as well as who the fourth seat is meant for. Carl and Assad put all effort into tracking the tenant of the apartment and they end up finding clues tracing back to the notorious institution for 'wayward' girls on the island of Sprogø, where extreme neglect and medical experiments in forced sterilisation were a part of everyday life. Even though the horrors of Sprogø are a closed chapter in Danish history, there are now people claiming the experiments have continued to go on up until today. Carl and Assad start a race against time to prevent new murders and attacks from happening. The fourth and final instalment in the Department Q series based on Jussi Adler-Olsen's best-selling novels. Christoffer Boe's feature premiered at CPH PIX 2018.

A Conspiracy of Faith

Hans Petter Moland : 2016
Flaskepost fra P

Siblings Samuel and Magdalena who grew up in a religious community in Denmark suddenly disappear. Meanwhile, at Police Headquarters in Copenhagen, an eight year old message in a bottle turns up containing a cry for help from a boy in captivity. Carl Mørck and his assistant Assad from the department for cold cases, Department Q, discover a connection between the two cases. Finally, as they manage to dig deep into the religious community, they get on the track of a man who has left a long trail of kidnappings and murders in his wake. The film is the third instalment in the Department Q series based on Jussi Adler-Olsen's best-selling novels. Hans Petter Moland's feature had its UK premiere at Edinburgh International Film Festival 2016.

My Sister's Silence

Kiran Kolarov : 2018
Malchanieto na sestra mi

In a family left by their father, who forms an extravagant collection of moths as a 'proof' of the countless female hearts he has conquered, the erratic mother tries to prevent her family from falling apart. Thirteen-year-old Theo is following in his father's footsteps by becoming an erotic novelist. His autistic sister Andy, 18, never leaves the pavement in front of her house and refuses to talk to anyone, communicating online only with her brother. On one of her solitary walks, she meets and falls in love with Dinko, a young bum, who sees in her an opportunity for a profitable deal. He trades her to a Gypsy baron only to realise he is in love with her. Meanwhile, the mother takes a desperate step to save her daughter. Kiran Kolarov's feature premiered at Golden Rose Film Festival 2018.

The Infinite Garden

Galin Stoev : 2017
Безкрайната градина

A dreamlike romantic drama which revolves around Philip, who has it all: a successful career and a beautiful girlfriend. However, he is still taking care of Victor, his sensitive brother, years after the death of their parents. Emma is autistic, fallen out of time. At night, she crafts a model of a mystical garden in the back of her flower shop, where Victor works. Emma lives in spheres completely beyond Philip's reach. Through her garden, Philip realises that he never felt so real until he met this otherworldly girl, he's falling in love with. His life is transforming until Victor confesses that he, too, is in love with Emma. Torn between the love for his brother and for Emma, Philip feels the pain of loss for the first time. Galin Stoev's feature debut premiered at Kinomania 2017.

No quiero perderte nunca

Alejo Levis : 2017
I Never Want to Lose You

The story focuses on a couple, Paula and Malena, who move into Paula's family home, a large dark house in the countryside, filled with a lifetime of objects. One morning, Paula receives a call from the retirement home where her mother lives and suddenly, a whirlwind of memories, emotions, broken promises and contradictions take hold of her. But Paula refuses to accept the pain she feels and goes through various stages of mourning, from panic to denial until in the end by reliving the best moments spent with her loved one, Paula learns to say goodbye. Alejo Levis's second feature premiered at Festival de Málaga de Cine Español 2017.

Un amour impossible

Catherine Corsini : 2018
An Impossible Love

It's 1958 in Châteauroux, a small town in the French province and a couple takes to the dancefloor to dance to a song by Dalida whose premonitory words will haunt the forty years that follow this love at first sight. Rachel, a modest office worker, meets Philippe, a brilliant young Nietzsche-reading sophisticate born to a bourgeois family. From this brief but passionate relationship is born a daughter, Chantal, but Philippe refuses to marry outside of his social class and Rachel has to raise their daughter alone. Time passes and Rachel leads a lonely work life, raising her only daughter in the myth of her ectoplasmic father. But as a teenager, Philippe finally agrees to see them again, and to recognise Chantal as his. A decision that will have far-reaching consequences for the mother and daughter and which will poison their subsequent relationship. Based on the book by controversial French novelist Christine Angot, Catherine Corsini's feature premiered at Festival du Film Francophone d'Angoulême 2018, and had its UK premiere at London Film Festival 2018.

Red Joan

Trevor Nunn : 2018

The year is 2000 and Joan Stanley is a retired scientist living in a London suburb. Her tranquil life is suddenly disrupted when she's arrested by MI5 and accused of providing intelligence to Communist Russia. We flash back to 1938, and young Joan is a new student at Cambridge, where a chance encounter with Sonya, an alluring fellow student, draws her into a circle of politicised youths supporting the Republicans in Spain and the Soviet dream of a classless society. Joan falls for Sonya's brother Leo, a dashing idealist in search of adventure. When the Second World War begins, Joan goes to work at a top-secret British intelligence project of great interest to Leo. Joan is soon facing several difficult choices: between national loyalties, between belief systems, between men. Confronted with an impossible question – what price would you pay for peace? – Joan must choose between betraying her country and loved ones or saving them. Trevor Nunn's feature premiered in Special Presentations at Toronto International Film Festival 2018.

Where Hands Touch

Amma Asante : 2018

Germany, 1944. 15-year old Leyna is German, born to a Caucasian mother and a black foreign fighter, whom she has never met. Her nightmare begins when she moves with her mother and little brother to the village where her relatives live. There, in Rüdesheim am Rhein, she experiences racism for the first time. Everyone calls her "the mongrel": her classmates, her teacher, even her uncle and aunt, and of course the SS patrols. Her mother has done her best to protect Leyna, but the racist credo of National Socialism has rendered her a pariah for the colour of her skin. Yet youthful ardour can bloom in the most unlikely places: Leyna is in love with Lutz, a member of the Hitler Youth – compulsory for all Aryan boys since 1936. Lutz toes the party line when it comes to antisemitism yet remains drawn to Leyna despite Nazi revulsion at the thought of a Black German. When that revulsion escalates to direct threat to her survival, Leyna and Lutz must face the seemingly inevitable outcome of their impossibly fraught romance. A coming-of-age story set in the most brutal of times. Amma Asante's feature premiered in Special Presentations at Toronto International Film Festival 2018.